The matches are coming fast and furious for the Vancouver Whitecaps, with a key six pointer at the top of the Western Conference next up against the Houston Dynamo on Wednesday.
The Dynamo’s 1-0 win over Vancouver back in May seemed to flip a switch for the Texas side, jump-starting a seven-game streak in which they have not lost in regulation. Their last four matches have been wins, and because the Dynamo didn’t play in Leagues Cup, they have the benefit of extra rest.
While they haven’t played many playoff-caliber teams during that stretch, Houston has looked like a true contender. Guilherme has 17 goal contributions and is in the running for a Golden Boot, solidifying him as one of the offseason’s best signings.
The Dynamo have also unloaded failed striker Ezequiel Ponce and have added reinforcements along the backline as they try and solidify their position near the top of the West. New striker Duncan McGuire has yet to score in Houston and still looks a bit rusty but the rest of the attack has been looking strong.
The backline for Houston has been rock solid as well, allowing the fourth fewest goals per match of any team in the league. Jonathan Bond has been adequate in goal, though he has been prone to errors in the past, showing a possible area of weakness.
The Dynamo present a real test for the Whitecaps, who got their groove back against Seattle but need to string together a series of good results to keep pace with the league leaders.
A return to BC Place will help, though the Caps will be without Brian White, who will miss out due to his lingering injury sustained during Leagues Cup. Jesper Sorensen can choose between sticking with Rayan Elloumi, who turned in an excellent performance on Sunday, or try to continue to experiment with Emmanuel Sabbi as striker. Sabbi looked like he could be an intriguing emergency option as a striker against Seattle before Sorensen had to abandon the plan due to injury.
Speaking of that injury, you assume Jeevan Badwal will miss out on this one after his rather nasty looking head injury on Sunday. That means we will likely see Ryan Gauld from the jump in this one — not a bad thing, with the Scot playing a key role in the win over the weekend with his appearance off the bench. For the first time, it felt like Gauld was truly on the same page with Thomas Müller and it showed in the end result. Bruno Caicedo will also be available for selection after a few weeks on the sidelines.
I don’t think many people thought Houston would be sitting in second in the West at this stage of the season but they proved during the May match that they are difficult to play against and have attacking quality to hit in transition and cause real problems for the Caps. Seattle couldn’t figure out how to do anything with those moments on Sunday but Houston have the quality to punish any miscues defensively. While a draw wouldn’t be a big deal, the Caps really need to rebuild some of the momentum that they lost between the World Cup break and the Leagues Cup fiasco. A win here would be a great start.